In 1971, Mariner-9, the first man-made object to orbit another planet, entered Martian orbit. The mission of the unmanned craft was to return photographs mapping 70% of the surface, and to study the planet’s thin atmosphere, clouds, and hazes, together with its surface chemistry and seasonal changes.

1930, Ed White born. First U.S. astronaut to walk in space. With James A. McDivitt he manned the four-day orbital flight of Gemini 4, launched on 3 Jun 1965.

1807, Auguste Laurent born. French chemist who developed organic chemistry as a distinct science.

1716, Gottfried Leibniz died. German philosopher, mathematician and political adviser, important both as a metaphysician and as a logician, and also distinguished for his independent invention of the differential and integral calculus.

In 1985, the first discovery of a fullerene was published in the journal Nature.

In 1967, a U.S. patent for “Ruby Laser Systems” was issued to Theodore Maiman (No. 3,353,115).

1819, Daniel Rutherford died. Scottish chemist and photographer who discovered the portion of air that does not support combustion, now known to be nitrogen.

In 1988, the Soviet Union launched its first space shuttle, Buran (“Snowstorm”), unmanned, on its first and only orbital flight.

In 1960, a U.S. patent was issued for an alkaline dry-cell to P.A. Marsal, Karl Kordesch and Lewis F. Urry who assigned it to the Union Carbide Corporation, the manufacturer of Eveready batteries (No. 2,960,558).

In 1887, German scientist, Dr. Carl Gassner, was issued a U.S. patent (No. 373,064) for the first “dry” cell. The sealed zinc shell which contained all the chemicals was also the negative electrode.

1943, James Mitchell born. Black American chemist who is best known for advancing the accuracy of trace element analyses.

In 1972, Skylab III, carrying a crew of three astronauts, was launched from Cape Canaveral, Fla., on an 84-day mission that remained the longest American space flight for over two decades.

In 1945, two newly discovered elements were announced: americium (atomic number 95) and curium (atomic number 96).